I Have..........................................................A Proposition O:

Well now let's get to some business as to why I am back. To be honest I am drowning in about twenty owed replies on other forums, so I really don't think I have the opportunity to join in any RPs anytime soon. Chatting and all that nonsense, yes. Anything else? No.

So this proposition..............is for the future. Like the summer. Have any of you guys heard of forums for only one RP? The different boards are dedicated to character creation and announcements and contests and general discussion and stuff, but most of them are for different areas of the one RP, not just a bunch of different RPs going on at once. It allows people to have a much bigger world to explore and it opens up room for a lot of world-building, since now you can have multiple threads dedicated to exposition on the setting and stuff, and not just one or two posts. Now this isn't advertisement to say "lol ya'll should join these forums 'XD'" and whatnot. Rather, I am making one myself.

And what is this RP going to be about? Well, let's talk about Homestuck Roleplays. All of them. They're everywhere in MSPA Forums and there were a few in here. What are they always about? A S___B session with multiple players, despite the fact that it requires diligence, activity, and hours of planning. Not to mention that most of the MSPA ones have Pesterchum usage on almost mandatory, even though timezones, school, and just plain not-having the program can cause people to miss out on important memos. The style of RP is almost always done in 2nd person with commands, even though that really just feels...I guess cheating to me??? There's no room for describing the thought process of the characters or just more writing in general.

And these RPs usually fail. Like literally I have seen all of them like totally die. And it annoys me because I have plenty of characters I want to RP but I just don't want to do it in that format necessarily???? And plus I really just cannot properly RP with anyone in the 2nd person format I'm sorry I personally find it very lazy and unintelligent it might be just be in fact it probably is but be honest with yourselves you Homestuckers could all write way more if you didn't post in that format it just annoys me okay

So there's the dilemma. I want to kind of try to create a forum setting that's both entirely open and involved, and I guess bring both you guys and my other forum buddies together. The problem is that none of my other forum friends know Homestuck, and most of you guys either don't like it, or don't like the type of characters I plan for the forum to be about...(if you guessed grey aliens u r right)

Thus, I am embarking on an adventure. An experiment, if you will. This forum will require absolutely no reading of the comic, because that's not what it's going to be about! This will be an AU Fantroll RP.

"But Luna, AUs suck!"
"But Luna, Fantrolls suck!"
"But Luna, Homestuck sucks!"

Well fuck you objecting voices. Because I am going to overcome all of those hurdles. Yes, AUs do tend to suck, as they are often excuses for the dreaded "shipping". Yes, fantrolls tend to suck because...wow I really don't know why? Like seriously poor guys they've earned the worst reputation. And Homestuck sucking is your opinion. This is hardly even about Homestuck.

So what is this about...................?

~*~aliens~*~

No really I am entirely serious here. It takes place on an Alternia where SGRUB is never played. Glubbyglub still exists, but the demonic Handmaid is a mere boogeyman's tale, and nothing lives on any of the planet's moons. The trolls are the best worst alien race there is. They have conquered entire galaxies, turning planets into resource mines and other intelligent life-forms into slaves, or at least subject empires/kingdoms. The Zodiac trolls do not exist, but there are rumors of an Heiress born on Alternia, and the Virgin, a jadeblood with a Mother Grub of the same title, lives at this time. Everything is totally normal and peaceful in this war-like, oppressive social systemed race.

And then they manage to piss off the wrong race in their conquests. They attack the Oculi, a very advanced and normally peaceful race. However, the Oculi are extremely powerful, and have friends in high places. And those friends have been very angry at the trolls. They arm the Oculi with resources and they retaliate against them, proving to be surprisingly powerful enemies. They even have their allies, the Consocii, a race of parasitic creatures, join in on the fun. They push back to the very borders of the Alternian solar system, having found out the location of the home planet through severe interrogation/a defector (not sure which yet to be honest).

And this is where the RP starts, three sweeps after the assault on the solar system has begun. The young trolls are being armed for war early. Reconnaissance parties are landing on Alternia frequently. Adults have actually returned to the home planet to defend the population, nay the entire race, from being wiped out. Paranoia of Consocii spies is running high. The Imperial Drones are still out and required to collect genetic material from trolls to bring about the next generation. While the Condesce is fighting off-planet, the Heiress is starting to be looked towards as a new leader. The xenophobia has led to less attention being given towards culling mutants, who now must choose between supporting their own race who hates them in the slight hope of earning glory, or, tired of the constant prejudice and need to hide, join the Oculi in hopes of finding a place in the soon-to-be-conquered (they think) empire. Rebels have also begun to spring up with the exact same goal in mind.

Wow, sounds cool, right? (if u reply here just to say no i will fuck ur shit up)

There will be quite a few boards and sub-boards and sub-sub-boards dedicated to the areas of the RP (the city, underwater, ruins, desert, etc yes i don't have names yet shush), but there will also be areas for RP Discussion where plotting things will be done, forum games because why not, and creative areas where you can show off your skills in writing and art and even set up comissiony/request shops for artsy things. There will of course be character sheets, and accepted ones will be put into sub-boards possibly sorted by allegiance or something. And there will be lots of exposition to read!!! Like you don't even need to know anything about trolls or the aliens because all you need to do is read it! And it will be fun reading too with pretty pictures. There will be contests every once in a while too, and the winner gets to do cool things like have their alien race show up as a new character option or they can create a new area or something!

And now the problems. I know the rules, like 1st or 3rd person only, 100 word minimum for an IC post, and all that nonsense. However, it's the specifics that trouble me. As many of you may already know trolls have sailor's mouths most of the time and I'm not sure if I should cut back on that or not to I guess lower the 'rating' or something? And what should I do about the more mature romantic scenes? I was thinking of confining them to PMs and having any erotic relations be relegated to timeskips in the RP but I am not sure. And what should I do about quirks and Trollian, most importantly? Like yes quirks should not be used in normal posts, but Trollian is a pretty integral part of their social lives and getting rid of that option would just be...lame. I was thinking a separate board where you could RP the conversation out quick but I'm not sure. And just how much of the character options should be mod permission only? Mutants and 'Canons' (characters definitely existing in the universe like the Heiress) are a definite mod-only, but should I also extend it to the rare jadebloods? What about seadwellers, who are royalty and really aren't that populous? Indigos because they're kind of overpowered?

Most importantly...how many of you guys would be interested in it? Even if you wouldn't join would you at least say it's a cool idea and, I dunno, spread the word to people who would like it? This won't be happening like really soon, by the way. I still need to figure out how to get a forum up (I was thinking proboards) and give it a fancy skin and all that.

So what say you guys?

(TLDR: I'm in!)

Referring to the bit about how constraining 2nd person can be in posting, I can't believe no one's thought to just scrap that format before. x3 I mean it's really not a necessity to the flow of the plot, and I can't even count the times when I've just had to pack a post full of empty sentences just because it was so difficult to be interesting in that Hussian 2nd person. Must have just been an unspoken rule or something. -w-;

I've always liked the kids over the trolls, but this does actually look pretty fun. Are the Oculi and Consocii races you've had around for a while - as non-HS OC races - or were they created for this RP? o: I guess I'm just curious. >u<

My two cents on:
Quirks - I'd be okay with or without them, given that typing quirks are basically just visualized indications of your troll's personality and even if he or she does not use quirks they'll be typing in basically the same style anyway. Nevertheless, it might be fun to use purely verbal quirks in conversation, like... WITHOUT any number substitution or prefixes but WITH capitals and/or punctuation marks to symbolize tone and pacing. Like how a troll might talk if they didn't have a keyboard, still in their quirk but not really making a difference whether the o's are 0's or the 2's are S's or if there's a ':33 <' in front. Because none of that would come out in speech. Quirks, therefore, would be a LOT simpler. xP I'd be fine with or without using them, I just think it might be fun.

Trollian - If interactions are going to be almost exclusively face-to-face, I wouldn't bother with it. If, however, we are going to need to communicate regularly over long distances, it would make sense for everyone to have a sort of portable Trollian unit. There might be a derpy little subforum where we can create a topic whenever we're pestering someone or creating a memo, everyone posts line-by-line, and afterwards it's compiled into a pesterlog which goes into the next IC post. Dunno if that would work though. >u<

Limebloods - I don't see a reason to not allow them, so long as make specific mention of the canon constraints surrounding them in the sheet guidelines. And the sheet would have to be reeeeeeeeeally good.

Censorship - Hmm... I guess it depends on what you want the rating to be, yeah. Up to you.

Romance - I'd go for just setting down a guideline of 'nothing past hugs and kisses' and tell folks that it can be continued in PMs if they want. xP I dunno though.

I'd only join if it was not derivative. But this is, so no. Sorry.

"AUs are bad... and mostly used for shipping."

no. This is a false statement, and I will not allow it. I have seen far too many amazing AU stories to accept this.

Night's favored child immediately comes to mind...

I'm in. I really want a chance to use Tarruk for something.


Also- to be frank, swearing should be allowed. Tarruk wouldn't be big on it, but it allows for expression from people's characters. I don't care about rating etc, so long as you aren't raping someone or something I don't think it's a major problem.

Sex scenes will be awkward for outsiders to read, and so should be relegated to timeskips. Whether they do the whole thing via PM is up to them.

I'm not sure how it's derivative. Moon? explain?

@Mata: The Oculi I've had for a while, and they've been used in scenarios other than the HS 'verse. The Consocii (name tentative, by the way) are a more recent creation actually, but once again they weren't for this RP necessarily until I thought of how good a fit they would be.

And yes, mannerisms of speaking are definitely going to be allowed! Like really subtle things such as maybe dragging out a letter 8 times in a conversation add a huge spice to the character and it's just really fun. The no-quirks-in-normal-posts things is just to make sure that someone with M17UN4 5P33K or whatever doesn't burn anyone's eyes out. I guess on that note...blood color in text optional????? what think you

That was pretty much what I was thinking, except there would just be a link to that thread in the end of a post. Communication via IM is going to be an iffy issue because of fear of hackers, so thank goodness I have a limit on that.

Actually I might just not allow limebloods at all seeing as (as far as we know), they're extinct. Mutant variations on blood color would be done with permission though, and also Rufioh-esque wings, and you know what there's a ton of other ideas people can have too.

@Moon: It's alright~!

@Joural: **"AUs do TEND to suck...OFTEN excuses for the 'dreaded' shipping". I perhaps have had a more negative experience with them than you. However, that is no excuse for generalizing my statement to just "bad". I put the 'tend to' and 'often' in there for a reason.

---

And as for swearing, you are indeed right. I will put in a rule when it's in...ridiculous proportions, however, as I get uncomfortable with it myself at some times, and I would dread if others felt the same way.

I think sex scenes are banned as the forum host's rules and guidelines anyway, so that should be easy. Like they can just take it to Skype or whatever.

Luna, as I'm sure you are very well aware, I absolutely adore the single-RP forums. Anywho, onto more relevant matters...

Yes. Oh HELL yes. I've already been looking into getting back into RPing with Trolls for a couple days at this point, so I am definitely in favor of this whole idea. If I remember exactly why we did the whole "second person" thing correctly, it was to try to make a more authentic experience, but I really have to agree. It sucked.

I have absolutely nothing else to say here, except that, when I join, don't really expect to see any Vequix or Xemkal or Kiyalla here. I know a number of you (at least used to) enjoy them, but they feel old and clunky to me now... I still adore them, but I think it is time for me to create something new.

luN_Cat16 wrote:

I guess on that note...blood color in text optional????? what think you

Blood colors are good. Help to make things easier to read on the fly.

I'd go for blood colors in text, yeah. :3

Joural wrote:

I'm not sure how it's derivative. Moon? explain?

Derivative as in the settings and stuff are taken from an existing media as compared to something invented for the occasion.

Oh. well then, yes, it is, but I'm not sure how that's a bad thing. Most fiction is derivative.

I'm in. This seems like a wonderful idea. I'd say that noble bloods and up should be limited, considering how strong they usually are.

Joural wrote:

Oh. well then, yes, it is, but I'm not sure how that's a bad thing. Most fiction is derivative.

Just seems kind of lazy.

Well hey now there are different skill sets involved in both realms of writing, I resent saying that any one thing is better than another. And if you both could, could you please stop debating on a thread I intended solely for questions about the topic in the OP and expression of interest/not interest??????

Alright, but at what limit tex? Like seadwellers is a no-go, and I'm assuming you're putting indigos in that limit as well?

Well, the limit would be like, blue bloods and up basically.

MoonlightDreams wrote:

Joural wrote:

Oh. well then, yes, it is, but I'm not sure how that's a bad thing. Most fiction is derivative.

Just seems kind of lazy.

And what do you write about? Humans? that seems rather lazy, working from a perspective you know so intimately. You're barely putting yourself out there at all. And it's not like you can't put thought into something "derivative"- Fallout Equestria is perhaps the single most expansive world I've ever seen outside of Lord of the Rings, and does a wonderful job of linking that world, with it's hundreds of unique, never before seen characters, to the well known characters of MLP, and combining two entirely unrelated things into one.

Then there's Project horizons- it's a derivative fic of a derivative fic. How could it possibly not be awful? Simple. It adds to it. It took the basics laid out in Fallout Equestria, and he built on it. Same with Pink Eyes and Heroes, and Operation Anchorage.

My definition of Derivative tends to be more specific- it's not "related to/ based on existing things", it's "Predictable because it is so closely linked and built upon the original." I don't want to see you write a story that feels like a port- I want you to make something that is NEW. Don't take the characters and put them in the same old setting- throw them somewhere new, force them to adapt. There are hundreds of benefits for skillful authors working with a pre-built canon, not least of which are that going in, most readers will already have a connection, and you have easy access to readers.

Basically, saying "derivative" as though it was a synonym for "lazy" and "bad" is stupid, because "derivative" just means based on something else- and there isn't anything that isn't. Feel free to disagree, but I guarantee if I looked at everything you wrote, I could find something to say each and every thing was a derivation of something else.


ANYWAY.

I'm not sure where you would place the limits on it, because highbloods should have some representation... maybe make them only available on special application? lazy writers would be weeded out immediately, and we/ you could find only the best to be given that right.

... though that would create a heavy dichotomy, having only the really good be highbloods...

guys could you just
take that debate
to PMs
i would gladly join in as i love debates but this is not the time or thread for it

Ahhhhh...not bluebloods, I think. Equius was more of a freak of nature than a norm for bluebloods and we can assume the same for Vriska. I just want the Indigos with their chucklevoodoos and Seadwellers with their elegant fishiness to be regulated because everyone tends to make SDs and stuff.

And by mod permission I don't think I'll do writing sample. Rather it's that you need to already create a character and RP with them or something before you ask. If anything I'll just bump up the character limit to 200 words or higher for them. People will just have to wait until they can make a special permission character, and occasionally they'll go off-limits if there are too many.

ALSO. Speaking of keeping track a census is a good idea yes? It'll keep the blood colors and races in check.

Census makes sense. If you need any help I would be willing to help with moderating, if you'll have me.

And if you approach bluebloods with that perspective you'll need to make a special note of it.

ArchDemon wrote:

I have absolutely nothing else to say here, except that, when I join, don't really expect to see any Vequix or Xemkal or Kiyalla here. I know a number of you (at least used to) enjoy them, but they feel old and clunky to me now... I still adore them, but I think it is time for me to create something new.

[[That is to say that would be directed at A and myself, ehehe. >3<; ]]

Anyway yeah in response to that I didn't expect that and also I'm using a couple a my little known ones so yeah completely understand that (I'm tiring of trolls right now, specifically Dacile, so she won't be in this, thank God).


But yes this is a great thing right here and I've already shown my interest so.

Alrighty, I think this is pretty good feedback! Now, I suppose the only real matter would be construction.

And Joural, worry not, for there will be enough elaboration to knock one's socks off. Also group discussion for the Forum Canon, seeing as headcanons are enough to send one into a tizzy.

ANYWAYS

The forum itself. Now I have been browsing Skin Templates (Proboards is still the assumed host option, if there is any objection then please raise it now) and I BELIEVE I have found a suitable skin. Link is here. Now before you click on the 'live preview', aka the example forum that shows off the skin, please do note that everything in it is editable. The banner, the avatars, and the colors (except for the dark) will all be replaced if this skin is indeed the one ya'll approve of.

Now with that out of the way, we have a singular problem glaring right in our faces. That problem would be the banner. This is not Vocaloid. This is Alternia. I have already contacted Claud on this, but the problem still stands that we need a cool banner for the forum. Specifically, this should not involve trolls at all. I was thinking perhaps a landscape picture, optimally of the hivestem city or something of the like but really after looking on Deviantart I cannot say I am too optimistic about finding the best results.

So currently we need an image to serve as the banner for the site. If a vectored background can be found then that is beautiful. If it's fanart then obviously, credit shall be given in the little credit box.

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Another matter: Voting. Many forums have Member of the Month, Character of the Month, Couple of the Month, or all three which the users choose. Should we include something along the lines of this? If so, what categories? I was thinking Member, followed by three Character-related sections, possibly by race or faction. What say you?

oh wow cool joining

The x of the month thing seems kind of silly to me, but there will probably be people who want it more than I don't really care about it so.

Okay A could you offer some of your own input on this, like the issue of Voting or the which castes are mod-permission and such?

I'd be okay with the monthly stuff. By race or faction sounds good.

the voting sounds like a terrible idea. It would degenerate into popularity contests if we don't have more than 20 people. Maybe something to implement if it passes a minimum level of, say, 50? That's enough not everyone will know everyone, so someone who doesn't win won't feel like it's a direct attack. And before you say "noone would do that" I promise they totally would.

And I don't really feel like commenting on the forum stuff because none of it matters to me and I can't ART.

I'm cool with the skin :3

As for voting, sure, why not. Though I think it might be simpler to just have one category for member and one category for character, unless we're gonna have a whooooole lot of characters >w<

Though I guess Joural does raise a good point. o: If we'd have it, something would have to be done to make sure that no one feels unpopular.